Historic Former Pittsburgh Church Property To Be Demolished

PITTSBURGH, PA — Despite efforts to save it, the Immaculate Conception Church campus in Bloomfield is headed for the wrecking ball.

The Rev. Thomas Gramc of the Saint Pio Parish that includes Bloomfield, Lawrenceville, Garfield and Friendship, made that announcement in an email sent to parish members, the Pittsburgh Business Times reported. The campus, fronted along Bloomfield's Liberty Avenue business district, includes the church, school and former convent.

Immaculate Conception constructed its first church building in 1906, according to Preservation Pittsburgh. It was damaged by fire in 1925, rebuilt and expanded to accommodate a growing Catholic population in the neighborhood. It was rebuilt again in 1960.

The church and school both closed in 2022.

The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh has put the .69-acre lot on the market. The asking prices is $3.5 million for the 28,800-square-foot church, the 21,000-square foot school and 4,400 square-foot convent.

Community efforts to repurpose the property thus far have been unsuccessful.

"Over the years, I've heard comments suggesting the Diocese has the right to do whatever it wants with the building—or that demolition is justified simply because there's no obvious use for it," said Greg Weimerskirch, an architect who is a graduate of the school. "That kind of thinking is not only short-sighted, it ignores the immense potential and deep meaning embedded in places like this."